Friday, December 4, 2009

There’s now a long tradition of fun and well-made singing-and-dancing holiday ads for the Gap, and this latest cheerleading incarnation doesn’t disappoint. The one with the little girls is equally enjoyable. Yes, that’s right. My cynical outer shell has been cracked by little girls chanting “How cute are these boots?”

Sh*tty

I can’t really complain about the look of this commercial, but other aspects of it rub me the wrong way. The girl, while cute, comes off as being privileged and smug. Also, Queen Latifah? Why? What? At least we don’t have to endure the abridged “Yes, Virginia” as recited by Jessica Simpson and Donald Trump this year.

3 comments:

The Macy's one is definitely sh*tty. Why did I have to watch it twice to see that no, she did not take the cab alone? Why didn't her dad - or the strange, silent dude following her - lift her up? Did he get lost in Queen Latifah's cleavage, which they so blatantly needed to show us? Yes, she's got a perfume to sell, but you there is some real 'Mammy' (big black woman mothering the small white child) subtext going on here, deliberate or not.

From a design standpoint, that Gap ad is quite lovely. As a writer, though, it makes me cringe. Literally. I just sort of shrunk down in my chair and hoped for it to be over."Go Christmas! Go Hannukah! Go Kwanzaa!"Oh God, I just relived it in my head.